Student nurses were today urged to make a real difference to the lives of patients with mental health difficulties and learning disabilities by applying in greater numbers to work in the field.

A new recruitment drive was launched by Stormont Health Minister Michael McGimpsey along with the Royal College of Nursing to persuade more students to join the sector.

There are four main branches of nursing - learning disability, mental health, adult nursing and children's.

However mental health and learning disability are regarded as two of the most complex and demanding areas of the profession and there have been disappointing application numbers to both sectors.

Mr McGimpsey told the launch of the campaign in Stormont's Long Gallery that while he was committed to tackling the mental health problems which affect one fifth of the population, the shortfall in nursing staff operating in the sector had to be addressed.

"I have established a Mental Health and Learning Disability Board which will be one of the driving forces in the implementation of (the) Bamford (review of services). It will act as champions for people with mental health and learning disabilities," the Ulster Unionist minister said.

"We have to provide high standards of service that are effective, safe and sees things from the patient's point of view. This will enable them to be fully included in every part of society.

"However we cannot deliver these services unless we have the right numbers of qualified and committed staff. In mental health and learning disabilities there are particular difficulties in recruiting staff. These are shortages which need to be addressed."

Full-time undergraduate nurses in Northern Ireland receive a non-means tested bursary of Â£5,770 each year and do not pay course fees.

Some can also claim allowances for books and uniforms, travel, dependency allowances and disability allowances.

Mr McGimpsey said his department commissions each year 730 pre-registration nursing places, including 50 mental health and 30 Learning Disability places from Queen's University and 40 mental health places from the University of Ulster.

Both universities, however, have reported low application numbers in both sectors.

In addition, 18 mental health work-based places have been commissioned by Mr McGimpsey's officials from the Open University.

The minister confirmed an extra 18 mental health places will be funded at the Open University this year.

Mr McGimpsey welcomed the universities' involvement in the campaign and paid tribute to those who worked in the mental health and learning disabilities sector.

"This is a time of immense change," Mr McGimspey said.

"There are many service developments ahead. I want to see a new, responsive and flexible service.

"The future will offer many opportunities which will make nursing an increasingly attractive and rewarding career choice.

"I would urge anyone considering a career in nursing to consider working in mental health and learning disability. It is you who can help those who are among the most vulnerable in our society and help support families who need support."

Mary Hinds, director of the Royal College of Nursing in Northern Ireland, said it was essential more students came forward to work in the sector.

"Whether working with young people to tackle problems that can lead to suicide or supporting a person with a learning disability to engage in the day-to-day living that most of us take for granted, the range of settings in which mental health or learning disability nurses practise is matched only by the diversity of the clients with whom they work," she said.